STAFF REPORT :::
A 2017 Spalding County missing person case has been resolved with the identification of human remains located in a wooded area in 2018.
On June 4, 2018, then-Spalding County Coroner Sonny Foster Spalding County Sheriff’s Office investigators and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation responded to the area of 5745 Jackson Road where unidentified human remains had been found by a couple trail riding in the area on four-wheelers.
The GBI on Feb. 21, 2022, notified current Spalding County Coroner Michael Pryor that those remains had been identified as those of Alphonso Reese.
Reese had been reported missing on Aug. 28, 2017, after he was dropped off in the area.
“The GBI Crime Lab was able to obtain DNA from the remains, and were able to match it with DNA from the Georgia Department of Corrections database,” Pryor said. “Their examination of the body showed that there were no signs foul play or trauma, however the cause of death is undetermined due to the condition of the remains.”
Since receiving notification of Reese’s identification, the SCSO has been working to notify his next of kin.
“Working jointly with the Spalding County Sheriff’s Office, and Muscogee County Coroner’s Office, we had been trying to locate any of Mr. Reese’s relatives or next of kin. We were finally able to contact his sister yesterday and make the notification. At this point I am working with her on arrangements for cremation, and I will transport his remains to her personally and do all I can do to help the family,” said Sheriff Darrell Dix. “Cooperation between everyone involved and coordinated through Spalding County Coroner Michael Pryor’s Office allowed closure for Mr. Reese’s family. This is a sad situation all the way around, but everyone involved worked hard to identify Mr. Reese and provide his family with as many answers as possible.”
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